The Ministry of Ungentlemanly Warfare (2024)

Guy Ritchie takes a true World War II raid and shoots it like a heist movie, all swagger and very little suspense. With U-boats choking Britain’s supply lines, Brigadier Colin Gubbins quietly sends Henry Cavill’s Gus March-Phillipps and a handpicked crew to Spanish-controlled Fernando Po, off West Africa, to cut off the ships keeping German submarines supplied. Officially, nobody signed off on it. Alan Ritchson plays Danish officer Anders Lassen, Alex Pettyfer plays Geoffrey Appleyard, and Eiza González’s agent Marjorie Stewart goes undercover on the island to charm the local SS commander. The action is slick and the banter is quick, but the crew rarely seems to be in real danger, an odd fit for a story where real people risked everything. Critics called it heavy on spectacle and light on suspense, landing at 68% on Rotten Tomatoes. It made $29.77 million worldwide on a reported $60 million. A 6.0 because the mission is fun and the tension got sanded off. $7.07 says you pause the epilogue so you can read every last word on screen.

What works: The cast sells the bravado, the period look is polished, and the raid itself is staged with real flair.

What doesn’t: The swagger drains the suspense, so a genuinely risky true mission rarely feels dangerous on screen.

Who it’s for: Fans of Guy Ritchie’s style and anyone who likes their war history told as an adventure.